- test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org - classiccmp.org

by jos.mar＠bluewin.ch

-----Original Message----- From: William Donzelli <aw288(a)osfn.org> To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> Date: Thursday, April 05, 2001 1:36 AM Subject: For Sale: PDP-8/i w/ Paper Tape >Due to my computing interests becoming very much centered in the IBM >world, and also due to 2 tons of Big Blue stuff coming shortly, I have >decided to sell off a PDP-8/i. I promised the original seller that I >would not Ebay the thing, so I am keeping it to only a few lists. Never mind the 8/i....What's the thing to the left of it ? Jos Dreesen

25 years, 3 months

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Digitizing Archives Not So Easy

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

Article about the difficulty of preserving information in the digital age http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42842,00.html They like 9 track tapes probably because they understand them. Mike mmcfadden(a)cmh.edu

25 years, 3 months

5
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MicroVAX 3800

by broth＠heathers.stdio.com

Looking for parts for a MicroVAX 3800. A salvage yard did a number taking out the TK70 and a couple of drives. I finally have it back together and booting up. Now I am looking for the complete front door assembly and the silk screened label that fits over the front panel buttons. Willing to trade etc. Brian.

25 years, 3 months

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OT somewhat. China, our aircraft, delays.

by cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com

At 04:47 PM 4/9/2001 -0400, Jeff wrote: >We are all adults here. I doubt this could turn into a flame war. We've been through this already Jeff and have established that we are all children here. (regardless of age) Which might go a long way toward explaining some of the threads :-) --Chuck

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

It's nostalgia time Do you remember IBM JCL, Job Control Language? Do you remember DEC DOS/BATCH? Have you punched cards using a drum card? Have you used an O26 keypunch? Have you used an O29 keypunch? Have you played trek on at VT52? Have you entered data on a VT05? Have you used an RX01? Have you used a TU58? The oldy and goldy Fortran II, remember go to's and format statements. Don't forget all capitals. IMPLICIT INTEGER (I-N) READ(5,995) I IF( I ) 100,200,300 100 PRINT(6,999) I 999 FORMAT('0I IS NEGATIVE, ',I4) GO TO 500 200 PRINT(6,998) I 998 FORMAT('0I IS ZERO, ',I4) GO TO 500 300 PRINT(6,997) I 997 FORMAT('0I IS POSITIVE, ',I4) 500 STOP END I think a computer language and programming flame war is needed to clear the air and stoke the emotions :) Never mind! Mike mmcfadden(a)cmh.edu

25 years, 3 months

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New find - NEC "mini7 GX" word processor

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

I was at a recent vehicle auction at the Volunteers of America (to look at the single-engine "experimental" one-seat airplane (that sold for ~$3600) and ran across an 1977 electronic sub-hunt game from Milton Bradley and an NEC mini7 GX dedicated word processor. I picked up the electronic game because it was 75% off green-tags day (making the game about $0.67) and I picked up the word processor because it came complete with all docs, spare floppies (720K 3.5"), spare ribbon, and an unused sheet feeder. Oh... I should mention... the docs and all the onscreen messages are in Japanese. It's my second Japanese WP (the first is a portable Sharp I got at a hamfest, but I've never found ribbons for it). After an extensive search on the web, all I could find (including on Japanese web pages) were a couple of translating utilities and a web page for a company that does media conversions. I do read _some_ Japanese (thus the interest in a word processor), but not much Kanji (a few, but mostly I read Katakana and Hirigana). The slim "getting started" guide is somewhat helpful, mostly because of all the pictures and labels in kana. Nevertheless, I am finding it quite difficult to get started with this thing. Has anyone on the list ever seen an NEC mini7? There are several models, some with dual floppy, some with floppy and hard disk (and, I think, a mini5 that may have dual floppy _plus_ hard disk). At this point, I can only read about 60% of the keyboard (lots of function keys, but I think I've figured out "shifuto" and "supeesu" ;-) The copyright dates in the docs and on screen indicate that this was made around 1986-1987. I haven't disassembled it yet (I've barely had time to power it on), but I'm guessing it has a V20 or similar processor in it. There is an optional RS-232 opening in the back (blank on mine) and a what appears to be a 36-pin centronics connector for an external printer as well as a smaller connector nearby that I'm guessing goes to the sheet feeder. *Any* information on this or something similar would be helpful. If I had a way to input kanji into Babelfish, I'd start translating keytops and phrases in the manual. I've been making a list of certain kanji I see over and over again and figure I'll need to learn. Thanks, -ethan __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get email at your own domain with Yahoo! Mail. http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/

25 years, 3 months

1
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Fwd from the Greenkeys list ...

by jfoust＠threedee.com

>From: "Craig Sawyers" <c.sawyers(a)tech-enterprise.com> >To: <greenkeys(a)qth.net> >Subject: RE: [GreenKeys] Refinishing question... >Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 08:52:44 +0100 > >> I >> demonstrated the M14 Strip Printer with Gumming Desk. They want to >> film the unit later this month. > >Thinking of WWII period stuff, you all might be interested in a film that >will be released in the US in August/September called Enigma. It is a >dramatisation of a novel by Harris of the same name, and has been produced >by Mick Jagger. > >Reason I know about this is that I have been restoring some cipher equipment >at Bletchley Park, and that is where much of the filming was done, and where >all the props are. These are ridiculously convincing! There is a full size >replica of the centre section of a U-boat, complete with rust streaks (you >feel obliged to knock on it to convince yourself it isn't made of metal), >and a 30 foot scale model of a whole U-boat for long shots. There are >several Turing Bombe replicas, and three Typex cipher machines (these look >so convincing I leant on one of them to reach something, and it toppled >over! They usually weigh a hundredweight!). > >Anyway - those in the UK, or visiting, can see the props as well as real >exhibits. I'm looking forward to seeing the film! > >Craig > >---- >Submissions: greenkeys(a)qth.net

25 years, 3 months

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OT somewhat. China, our aircraft, delays.

by blacklord＠telstra.com

----- Original Message ----- From: Iggy Drougge <optimus(a)canit.se> Date: Monday, April 9, 2001 3:47 pm Subject: Re: OT somewhat. China, our aircraft, delays. > > Our people need our support now. Later is never in this game. > > Our? > I agree with that last comment of yours, some people don't seem to realise that this list is world-wide, it definitely isn't "our" plane, & to tell the truth, I couldn't care less - can we get back on topic peoples ? telnet://commodore.thebbs.org ftp://commodore.thebbs.org ---------------- Powered by telstra.com

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

I've been noticing a very disturbing trend...anything that isn't an overclocked Intel box is "old" or "legacy". For those of us who care about the quality of what we put on our desktops (and in our computer rooms), this is pretty frightening. -Dave McGuire On April 6, Curt Vendel wrote: > Joe, > > Old Odd Machine??? The HP 9000 K520 isn't that terribly old, I installed > one of those with HPUX 11.3 at GT Interactive in Manhattan back in 95' A > damn good and powerful machine. > > > Curt > > > > Joe wrote: > > > FWIW there were two of these for sale at the auction at the Goddard Space > > Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama this past week. A guy that I know went > > to the auction and I asked him to try and pick them up for me but I don't > > know if he did or not. He should be back in a day or two and then I'll > > know. The point is there's still lots of these old odd machines around if > > someone is willing to search for them. > > > > Joe

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

Being a kid is a state of mind. I know a few 17 year old adults and a few 40 year old kids. I consider myself a kid because I sit on the floor when I take apart computers, I stand on my head in containers/dumpsters pulling out computers, I occasionally look like a dust bunny/dirt devil after crawling around a warehouse. My kids think I'm a kid or crazy because I talk to the computers when I'm taking them apart. Kids also get excited when they get new toys, and that's me when I've found a new computer. Actually I'm a 49 year old kid. Maybe I'll go back to school when my kids are in college and teach kids. Actually my goal is to be able to work/play on interesting projects. Mike mmcfadden(a)cmh.edu

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by rigdonj＠intellistar.net

FWIW there were two of these for sale at the auction at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama this past week. A guy that I know went to the auction and I asked him to try and pick them up for me but I don't know if he did or not. He should be back in a day or two and then I'll know. The point is there's still lots of these old odd machines around if someone is willing to search for them. Joe

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by jfoust＠threedee.com

At 04:58 PM 4/8/01 -0400, THETechnoid(a)home.com wrote: >I often hear folks refer to thier computer as a "modem". I suppose they >do this because that is the main function of the machine for them - being >spammed by AOL. >Some call it thier 'hard drive'. Some call it thier 'Windows'. The one that drives me crazy is when people call it "the computer", as in "I'm learning the computer now." - John

25 years, 3 months

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Way OT (was RE: OT somewhat. China, our aircraft, delays.)

by rigdonj＠intellistar.net

At 11:33 PM 4/8/01 -0700, you wrote: >On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Chris Kennedy wrote: >> - The radome is missing. I'm at a loss to explain how the radome >> got ripped off the aircraft by contact on the wing -- especially >> given that the fuselage forward of the wing root doesn't appear >> damaged. > >Was the missing radome collision damage? >Or would jettisoning the radome be standard procedure? Jettision the radome? Surely you jest??? How do you propose to jettision something that's on the FRONT of the aircraft when there are four LARGE whirling propellors behind it? Obviously you never seen what happens to a propellor when it strikes a solid object. It's one thing to stike a soft object like a person when idling on the ground but the results are VERY different when it hits metal debris. Especially at flight speed and engine cruise RPM. Any damage to the blades throws the whole engine/gearbox/propellor assembly badly out of balance. Then the blades break off and fly around like huge knives. If one hits the fuselage it WILL go completely through it and it can cut it completely in two. Even if the fuselage survives, the blade will usually cut all the flight controls and the aircraft go completely out of control. And let's not even talk about what it can do to the other engines, propellors and fuel tanks! This isn't speculation. This is exactly what happened to a similar aircraft (EC-121) flying out of Otis AFB. We lost the entire crew of 23 people. All in all, the crew of the US plane is very lucky to be alive. The pilots had to have been very good just to get the plane on the ground in one piece. Flying back to their carrier or a US base would have been absolutely out of the question. Joe > > >

25 years, 3 months

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OT somewhat. China, our aircraft, delays.

by rigdonj＠intellistar.net

At 05:52 PM 4/8/01 -0700, you wrote: >Do you remember when we would call that "an Army weather plane doing >meteorological research"? > >When did we start calling them spy planes? AFTER Gary Powers was shot down in his "unarmed weather recon" plane and he and the plane and it's equipment were put on public display in the USSR. Before that most people in the US were naive enough to believe that we didn't do such things. ROFL! > > >What WOULD we do if the roles were reversed? Shoot it down of course. But this isn't exactly the same thing. This flight was over water and not over land. We (the US), the Russians, the Cubans and a number of other countries have been doing this for YEARS and it's been common for the "enemy's" aircraft to escort each others aircraft. I've been in aircraft in the North Atlantic that were escorted by Russian fighters and our fighters also regularly escorted their aircraft. In the vast majority of the cases there was no trouble. I'm sorry but I don't see any secret plots in the recent US/Chinese incident. It's not uncommon for aircraft in close formation to collide and I think it was an accident. Now both governments are acting like tough guys and unwilling to admit any fault or apologize. It's all rather childish IMO. Does anyone have a count on the number of Cuban, Russian, North Korean and other communist aircraft that have landed in US controlled bases that we've kept and reverse engineered? I can name at least four that I personally know of. Joe

25 years, 3 months

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HP 2000 TSB status update

by west＠tseinc.com

At long last, the 7900A drive is working reliably - and passes all diagnostics. The dual 2100 cpus are fully tested, as is the processor interconnect kit. The last major peripheral I have to get up and running is my 7970E tape drive - that's being worked on right now. Soon as that's done - I can start loading the HP2000 Access TSB operating system. After that system is up, I'll then build an HP2000E system using a 21MX cpu instead; all parts are on-hand for that. Items I'm still looking for desparately: The HP2000 IOP firmware for the 21MX cpu's (I have the firmware for 2100's, but need it for the 21MX's). Need the diags for the 7970E on paper tape, the newer version that uses the diagnostic configurator (have 7970E diags, but they're the old non-configurator style). System operators guide for 2000E (Al? Eric??, Bob Curtis wants his manual!!).

25 years, 3 months

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Way OT Bullets and house cleaning

by xds_sigma7＠hotmail.com

Hmm, I don't shoot things... I blow them up.. Or make use of a nice large sledgehammer, combined with dropping/kicking/running over the object marked for destruction... blowtorches are fun too! (Note: this is directed at non-living critters, mainly dead hard drives, PC cases, and, in one memorable occasion of particular violence, an iMac keyboard.. heh..) Will J _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com

25 years, 3 months

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VT340 focus adjustment?

by dburrows＠netpath.net

Loktite or drip some candle wax on it. Dan >Thanks Allison! I got the cover off and found the adjustment side of the >terminal (left side looking at it from the front) and the focus is a screw >that goes into what looks like an HV transformer. I've adjusted it to be >razor sharp, now what do I use to "lock it down" ? What is that stuff that >looks like nail polish called? > >--Chuck >

25 years, 3 months

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Paul Allen Buys Old MITS Building

by jlewczyk＠speakeasy.net

Its gonna become a computer museum! Albuquerque newspaper article: http://www.abqjournal.com/news/294821news04-04-01.htm >From the article... A founder of software colossus Microsoft has purchased the Albuquerque building where the company had its first office, parties to the transaction said Tuesday. A company controlled by Paul G. Allen in October purchased the 26,000-square-foot building at the intersection of California and Linn NE, said Peggy Daskalos, whose company sold the building. Allen teamed up with Bill Gates in 1975 to start what became Microsoft. *snip* According to a brief item in the current issue of Forbes magazine, the building's sellers say Allen's company plans to turn the building into a computer museum. *snip* Slashdot discussion: http://slashdot.org/articles/01/04/05/194214.shtml - John Lewczyk - jlewczyk(a)speakeasy.net

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by Innfogra＠aol.com

In a message dated 4/7/01 7:16:39 AM Pacific Daylight Time, rigdonj(a)intellistar.net writes: > Despite the large > number of them used by the US Navy, very few managed to get into the > surplus market. I couldn't find a single surplus dealer that had one or > that even knew what they were. I got one shortly before my auction. It was like an overgrown 9845 It was larger and heavier IIRC. and sharper corners. It was one of the first 32 bit integrated workstations. Advertised as a mainframe on the desktop in 1985. Ran HP-UX.. Came with either a B&W or color monitor, 512K byte Ram and a 5 1/4 floppy. You could add a 10 meg HD, internal I think. The 9000 520 also cost $30,000 to $50,000 in 1985. Mine had two HPIB channels. I tried to get it hooked up before the sale but wasn't able to. A local listmember bought it so it is still within the CC list family. It is the only one of those I ever found. Paxton Portland, OR

25 years, 3 months

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IBM 7545

by h.mansfield＠ucc.ie

I am interested in a copy of the Eproms on this machine , they are labelled IC16 and IC17 on the main controller board , prehaps a copy could be sent as an email attachment . I would appreciate any help . Regards , Hilary Mansfield

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by r_beaudry＠hotmail.com

>> > definition of "kid" = under age 18 >> >> Wrong definition, I suspect :-) Especially if you ask my wife! Probably >> even more so if you ask some of my work colleagues about my collection. >> >> >Reminds me of the old saying "Men are just boys... with more expensive >toys". Certainly Fiona reckons that I need to grow up, playing with >computers and bikes. I might just do that one day but yet, I am only 43. I read a good Wired article, an interview with Arthur C. Clarke on the 25th anniversary of 2001. He said he wanted his epitaph to be this: "He never grew up; but he never stopped growing." That sounds like a good life to me! The full interview at: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/1.03/clarke.html makes a VERY interesting read, especially his comments on "reality"... Also, to make this slightly on-topic, thanks to all who responded on my Northstar keyboard problem. I am in the middle of selling my house and buying a new one, and the last couple of storms up here in central Massachusetts flooded my basement, so I have been cleaning up from that. I will try things out, and let you all know what's up... Rich B.

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by vcf＠siconic.com

On Sat, 7 Apr 2001, bill claussen wrote: > Very well stated and welcome to all that are interested in your given area! To be serious (for once) I think it's terrific that "kids" are interested in old computers. To show an interest in machines that in some cases predate themselves shows a reverence and appreciation for computer technology, and this is the type of person the world needs to continue progress. Seriously. Back in the 50s the US was on such a push to emphasize technology in schools, but nowadays we are teaching kids how to be users and nothing more. I'm glad to see younger folks taking it upon themselves to explore technology at a more fundamental level. These are the ones who will become the great programmers and engineers of the future. One of the things I am doing to promote appreciation of old computers and computer history amongst the younger generation is preparing a mini-lecture on computer history that I plan to give at local schools (for free of course). My idea is to show them how we got to where we are today with computing technology, for example showing them an evolution of disk drive technology by comparing a ZIP drive to a 3.5" to a 5.25" to an 8" to paper tape to punch cards, etc. And actually bringing the drives in too! It won't interest all of them, or even most of them, but the ones that were waiting to discover computers will certainly "get it", and those are the ones I want to reach. Plus once I get them hooked I can then recruit them to do menial tasks for the VCF Archives like cataloguing books and schlepping stuff around ;) Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org

25 years, 3 months

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O.T. - Virus: FOOT-AND-MOUTH

by lgwalker＠look.ca

------- Forwarded message follows ------- Send reply to: <1st-powermacs(a)mail.maclaunch.com> (1st PowerMacs) To: <1st-powermacs(a)mail.maclaunch.com> (1st PowerMacs) Date sent: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 07:23:16 -0600 From: aergo <aergo(a)earthlink.net> Subject: O.T. - Virus: FOOT-AND-MOUTH Have a good week, everyone ! A. ;-) ====================================== Subject: Virus: FOOT-AND-MOUTH ====================================== FOOT-AND-MOUTH BELIEVED TO BE FIRST VIRUS UNABLE TO SPREAD THROUGH MICROSOFT OUTLOOK Researchers Shocked to Finally Find Virus That Email App Doesn't Like Atlanta, Ga. - Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Symantec's AntiVirus Research Center today confirmed that foot-and-mouth disease cannot be spread by Microsoft's Outlook email application, believed to be the first time the program has ever failed to propagate a major virus. "Frankly, we've never heard of a virus that couldn't spread through Microsoft Outlook, so our findings were, to say the least, unexpected," said Clive Sarnow, director of the CDC's infectious disease unit. The study was immediately hailed by British officials, who said it will save millions of pounds and thousands of man hours. "Up until now we have, quite naturally, assumed that both foot-and-mouth and mad cow were spread by Microsoft Outlook," said Nick Brown, Britain's Agriculture Minister. "By eliminating it, we can focus our resources elsewhere." However, researchers in the Netherlands, where foot-and-mouth has recently appeared, said they are not yet prepared to disqualify Outlook, which has been the progenitor of viruses such as "I Love You," "Bubbleboy," "Anna Kournikova," and "Naked Wife," to name but a few. Said Nils Overmars, director of the Molecular Virology Lab at Leiden University: "It's not that we don't trust the research, it's just that as scientists, we are trained to be skeptical of any finding that flies in the face of established truth. And this one flies in the face like a blind drunk sparrow." Executives at Microsoft, meanwhile, were equally skeptical, insisting that Outlook's patented Virus Transfer Protocol (VTP) has proven virtually pervious to any virus. The company, however, will issue a free VTP patch if it turns out the application is not vulnerable to foot-and-mouth. Such an admission would be embarrassing for the software giant, but Symantec virologist Ariel Kologne insisted that no one is more humiliated by the study than she is. "Only last week, I had a reporter ask if the foot-and-mouth virus spreads through Microsoft Outlook, and I told him, "'Doesn't everything?'" she recalled. "Who would've thought?" ------- End of forwarded message ------- Reply to: lgwalker(a)look.ca

25 years, 3 months

1
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ESDI drives

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

Tony is (almost) correct: ESDI drives use a binary select scheme similar to SCSI. The three select bits are decoded to enable drives 1,2,...,6,7. There's no "drive 0" because that corresponds to the "deselect all drives" condition. However, some PC controllers only support two drives (another legacy of the IBM PC BIOS) and of course they use drives 1 and 2. Therefore, some PC manufacturers suggest using a cable with a twist, to swap pins 26 and 28 (DS1 and DS2), leaving the select jumpers the same on both drives. I've never seen a cable with a twist on a "real" ESDI system. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by Demon02554＠aol.com

In a message dated 4/8/01 5:01:42 PM Eastern Daylight Time, foo(a)siconic.com writes: << Ah yes, to be young and naive again :) The one thing you can never have enough of is time. Use it wisely to avoid regrets later on in life (moral of the story: get a <girl/boy>friend and a life now...they will become equally as important later on). Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org >> heh it was a joke dude....but oh well....i used to have one...just in between now...

25 years, 3 months

5
6
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Burroughs E6000

by dittman＠dittman.net

The first computer I had close-up experience with was a Burroughs E6000. This was a low-end business system that my grandfather's business used for doing payroll. After the system was retired it was stuck in a garage. About 20 years ago I claimed the unit but given that I don't have the space all I took was the schematics and build list (the unit is still in the garage waiting for me to do whatever with it). -- Eric Dittman dittman(a)dittman.net

25 years, 3 months

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PDP11/23 free to anyone who wants one.

by Demon02554＠aol.com

i called it first...heh Robert Cobbins

25 years, 3 months

1
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PDP11/23 free to anyone who wants one.

by Demon02554＠aol.com

how much for shipping....im interested

25 years, 3 months

2
1
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DEC Pro380 Mainboard Wanted

by dittman＠dittman.net

I have a Pro380 with a bad mainboard. I've got someone >from this list checking to see if he has a spare, but I'd like to see if anyone else has a spare for sale, just in case. Thanks. -- Eric Dittman dittman(a)dittman.net

25 years, 3 months

1
0
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just outta curiosity

by Glenatacme＠aol.com

In a message dated 04/07/2001 10:19:08 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Demon02554(a)aol.com writes: > just wondering....am i the only kid on this list? > > Robert Cobbins Define "kid." Glen 0/0

25 years, 3 months

5
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GKS startup on VT340 terminals?

by cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com

Hello all, does anyone know what parameters I need to give to SYS$STARTUP:GKSTARTUP.COM to tell it that I'm doing graphics on a VT terminal rather than on a frame buffer? --Chuck

25 years, 3 months

3
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New Finds

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 8, 18:02, Iggy Drougge wrote: > On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Mark Green wrote: > > > THe keyboards are non-standard, so its a good thing you found them. > > What does a "standard" keyboard look like? Ha! Good question. What Mark probably means is a PS/2 keyboard, which later SGIs use. Suns, however, also use proprietary keyboards and mice (unique serial protocol), at least until recently -- the new SunBlades are USB-only. Yuk. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 8, 13:11, Joe wrote: > At 03:12 PM 4/7/01 -0400, Dave McGuire wrote: > > What about the NEWER "good" stuff? > > Like what? Even SGI is going to WinBlows/Intel platforms. Is it? I've seen precisely one SGI Wintel box (which got sent back), and the CEO who introduced that idea has gone. Most of what SGI seems to be doing now is firmly back in the MIPS/IRIX camp, I'm glad to say. With a generous dose of Linux. How far it'll go is anybody's guess, of course. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

1
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HP 9000 520

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On April 8, Joe wrote: > >> > For those of us who care about the quality of what we put on our > >> >desktops (and in our computer rooms), this is pretty frightening. > >> > >> Yeap, you'd better grab the older "good" stuff while you can. > > > > What about the NEWER "good" stuff? > > > Like what? Even SGI is going to WinBlows/Intel platforms. Yeah, they've been saying that for years. I don't know of anyone who's bought one. I'm partial to Alphas, myself, aside from SGIs... -Dave McGuire

25 years, 3 months

3
2
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just outta curiosity

by Demon02554＠aol.com

>Nope, we intend to keep everything from you young whipper-snappers. Your >first history lesson is to understand that computers used to sit behind >big panes of glass, accessible only to the priesthood that maintained >them. You communed with them only through a small hole where you passed >your punched cards and got your results back (usually just error >messages). >So too it is with computer history. You can only have access to the >knowledge we pass to you through the little hole in the window. Do not >try to subvert our authority or we will find it fit to smite thee. >And let's just get one thing straight, you were either born to compute or >you ended up being some post-degree market-molded wannabee nerd who >couldn't get a job in your chosen profession and just jumped on the >bandwagon during the great Internet bubble economy of the late 1990s and >"became" a programmer. >So it is not true that "gurus were neophytes once". Gurus are born, >not made. >Ah, nothing like a good rabble rousing to start a Sunday morning. >Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival >----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - >International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org well....there werent always punchcards....my grandfather once let me see a "supercomputer" that was programmed entirely by pushing switches.... anyways...im 16....i've been into computers since i was about a year old....have been a "programmer" since i was 5 and discovered BASIC...now im more into figuring out hardware design and all that fun stuff.... but the gurus should be nicer to us cause there are more of us than there are of them....and if need be i'll go find the info i need on my own...its amazing what you can do when you dont have a girlfriend or much life outside of school....heh Robert Cobbins

25 years, 3 months

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ESDI drives

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 7, 23:31, Tony Duell wrote: > Incidentally, is the ESDI spec > available anywere (or at least a signal description)? I'v not looked for whole spec recently, but the pinout is available at http://www.u-net.com/mike/techref/iopin.txt (about 1/3 of the way down the page) and also in "the hardware handbook" website at http://www.hardwarebook.net/ However, you need to take a little care with some of the pinouts listed there, as they're not all "official", some are just what people have found to work in particular circumstances (eg, some of the "null modem" cables"). Didn't Aaron Finney have ESDI amongst his pinout list collection? And what happened to that, anyway? His web page at http://www.prinsol.com/classiccmp/ seems to have disappeared. > > However, some PC controllers only support two drives (another legacy of the > > IBM PC BIOS) and of course they use drives 1 and 2. Therefore, some PC > > manufacturers suggest using a cable with a twist, to swap pins 26 and 28 > > (DS1 and DS2), leaving the select jumpers the same on both drives. I've > > never seen a cable with a twist on a "real" ESDI system. > > I wondered about that, too (it was an obvious way for a twist to be able > to swap drives 1 and 2). I assume from this that the drive select lines > are not used as data lines for anything else, then (unlike SCSI, say, > where the same 8 lines are used both to select a particular unit and to > transfer commands and data). No, it's a pretty low-level interface, like ST506/412. I read somewhere that it was designed as an enhanced/faster ST412 interface, possibly by Maxtor and Miniscribe, and I think Maxtor used to have some information on their website. All I can find now, though, is a line in their glossary. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by Demon02554＠aol.com

> I thought we were all kids here :-). Just that our toys are a little more complicated than average.... too true my friend....too true...but i suppose i should have asked minors....heh Robert Cobbins

25 years, 3 months

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pdp8e powersupply / Filter capacitors

by jos.mar＠bluewin.ch

Does anyone know if replacements are avaliable for the filter capacitors on the mains section of the PDP 8/E power supply ? I've got 3 supplies, and all of them trip the ground fault protection switch when switched on.... Jos Dreesen

25 years, 3 months

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Address needed (Z80 Starter kit Docs)?

by ncherry＠home.net

Would the kind soul who sent me the docs please directly email with your address? I think I know who it is but since I have things (life) in such a mess I want to make sure. Thanks -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry(a)home.net http://members.home.net/ncherry (Text only) http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/lightsey/52 (Graphics) http://linuxha.sourceforge.net/ (SourceForge)

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On April 7, Joe wrote: > > For those of us who care about the quality of what we put on our > >desktops (and in our computer rooms), this is pretty frightening. > > Yeap, you'd better grab the older "good" stuff while you can. What about the NEWER "good" stuff? It seems that Bill Gates has the world convinced that PeeCees are the only computers that are currently produced, and that everything else is discontinued. It's gotten to the point where, on current (or relatively recent) hardware, the questions I hear from people speak of them in the past tense..."what os DID they run?" or "what WAS their list price?"...even for machines whihch are being sold brand-new today, but just aren't crappy "more MEGAHURTS!" Intel toys. -Dave McGuire

25 years, 3 months

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Charging Laptop (and other)batteries

by lgwalker＠look.ca

This is likely elementary but many times I run across the encased laptop and other function(eg cordless drills) batteries. Of course each has it's own proprietory charger which have long since disappeared and are costly to replace as well as being device and company specific . Many of them have a 3rd terminal. What was it's purpose. Can you recharge these batteries simply by rigging up an interface using appropriate voltages and polarity ? How would you deal with the 3rd terminal ? larry Reply to: lgwalker(a)look.ca

25 years, 3 months

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New Finds

by broth＠heathers.stdio.com

Just got home with a nice load. Saved it all from the dumpster. VAX 11/750 RA81 - TU80 VAXstation 4000 VLC (2) VAXstation 2000 (2) old Compaq luggables (2) storage works box's (2) Control Data Cyber 910's various DEC/Apple keyboards monitors etc.. box's DEC cables more All for $120 Any good sites for the CDC box's. I guess they are repackaged SGI? Brian.

25 years, 3 months

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Univac?

by rigdonj＠intellistar.net

Does anyone know what a Univac 8303 is? It's dates from around 1978. Joe

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 7, 23:13, Demon02554(a)aol.com wrote: > definition of "kid" = under age 18 Wrong definition, I suspect :-) Especially if you ask my wife! Probably even more so if you ask some of my work colleagues about my collection. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

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New Finds

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 8, 5:12, Mark Green wrote: [ re SGI/CDC Cyber 910 keyboards] > The cables for the keyboard are PC keyboard cables, except they > need males connectors on both ends. It would be more accurate to say they're LIKE PS/2 keyboard cables, except they need a male (6-pin miniDIN) connector both ends, AND they need all 6 pins wired up. PS/2 only uses 4 wires (pins 2 and 6 are unused), and so PC 6-pin miniDIN cables are not fully wired. Mac cables probably are. > They won't boot without > a keyboard, stop part way through the initial hardware check in > the boot prom. I was going to say that Indigos boot fine without a keyboard, using the first serial port as console -- but in fact you have to change the PROM settings (setenv console d, or setenv nogfxkbd 1) to do that, for which you (initially) need a keyboard and monitor :-( -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager Dept. of Computer Science University of York

25 years, 3 months

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EDS (was RE: HP 9000 520)

by kfergaso＠swbell.net

I won't relate my EDS horror stories (same song, second verse...), but Ross Perot left in 1984-85, long before the presidential run. Hi Chris Kennedy, you wrote on 4/7/01 10:59:05 AM: >Jeff Hellige wrote: > >On Sat, 7 Apr 2001, Jeff Hellige wrote: > >> Just wait until ES/NMCI starts taking over the federal >> government computers and networks. Then anything that isn't supplied >> by them and isn't running Win2000 will be considered 'legacy' and >> basically unsupported. > >What is ES/NMCI? > > EDS (my mistype) is Ross Perot's company and they now have a >signed contract with the Dept. of Navy to take over the LANs > >[Accurate representation of how delightful it is to work with EDS, > snipped]

25 years, 3 months

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HP 9000 520

by kfergaso＠swbell.net

Hi Joe, you wrote on 4/7/01 9:20:28 AM: >Curt, > > First, are we talking about the same machine? I'm talking about the HP >9000 520. Aka 9020. It's a large desktop machine with a built in keyboard >and monitor. It looks like a grossly oversized Commodore 64. I think the K >520 is an entirely different machine. > Curious. The 520 we had was more like a large deskside system. No video, though probably one was offered. Definately no built in monitor. We used the standard HP terminals as consoles. I never saw it referenced as a 9020. we also had a 540, but I don't know what the differences were. But they were really cool UNIX boxes. You could hear your data on the 404Mb drive being read and written. And they were built like tanks. Kelly

25 years, 3 months

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just outta curiosity

by Demon02554＠aol.com

definition of "kid" = under age 18

25 years, 3 months

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OT: load carrying capabilities of lumber/steel

by vaxman＠qwest.net

I am looking for an online reference to help me calculate how much live load (AKA VAXen) I can put on my living room floor. The floor: 2x10's 2 foot on center, approximately 14 foot span (guess, too lazy to measure just yet). 3/4" OSB on top, carpet, 1/2" OSB (to keep the VAX from squishing into the carpet)... The VAX: 1100 lbs of true blue & white BIG IRON! minus whatever I remove for hand transport. Me: 300 lbs of Coca-Cola and Hostess fruit pies :) Clint PS I also want to replace a smallish steel IBeam with a micro-lam, so steel numbers would help too...

25 years, 3 months

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TI59 Annotations aviable (For hardware diagrams)

by sipke＠wxs.nl

Hi Folks ( This info was also posted on the ODDCALCS list) ------ An Update on the TI59/58 Information --------- I've completed a preliminary version of the annotation files for the TI59/58 Hardware Diagrams I've also dedicated part of my homesite for this topic. http://xgistor.ath.cx TI59 hardware page: Go Vintage Computers >> TI59 Programmable Calculator Hardware TI59 hardware files: Go Files >> Various Downloadable files >> TI59 Regards Sipke de Wal

25 years, 3 months

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